The 2011 Summer Style Upgrade

Ten easy advances and some trenchant advice: just like what you wore last summer, only better

Jun 13, 2011

Ten easy advances and some trenchant advice: just like what you wore last summer, only betterBy The Fashion Editors

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Jeffrey Westbrook/Studio D

The Essential

There is something about summer that throws a lot of us off our style game. Socks or no socks? Shorts or no shorts? Will I look stupid if I wear a linen shirt? Wait, should I even own a linen shirt? So rather than take any chances with colors or patterns, we play it safe with khakis and golf shirts while doing our best to blend in. This is no way to get dressed — or, for that matter, to live — but we have a solution: upgrades, a whole bunch of them, and not just of the individual items you're wearing but how you're pulling them together. For instance: Throw an unlined blazer over a good V-neck T-shirt. Or: Go light, or even white, with your chinos. Or — what the hell? — swap out brown boat shoes for blue desert boots. Or: Make like this guy and do all three. You won't look too dressed up or too dressed down or too much like anyone else. You'll look like you, and as far as summer is concerned, you can't do much better than that.

Most of us, when shopping for shades, think only about size and shape. But a new breed of sunglasses, with gradient lenses in unexpected colors (green, brown, blue) and plastic frames that are transparent, patterned, and even ingeniously sculpted, offers a new frontier in personal style. Explore it.

For all the current alternatives to loafers as usual — boat shoes in a bright color, say, or canvas lace-ups — our favorite is the unexpected wing tip. This pair of off-white lace-ups from Kenneth Cole look like they've already done some hard living, and you can brighten them up with contrasting socks.

We love a navy-blue wool blazer nine months of the year. But for the warm-weather months, a wool-and-silk blazer is a lightweight, uncomplicated way to dress up your favorite chinos and shirt. And if you go for one as reasonably priced as this jacket from Joseph Abboud Collection, you can spring for two (or more!) in unusual colors.

Give your polo shirts a rest and opt for a short-sleeved dress shirt that fits just right. (And, since a lot of brands are making slim-fit versions right now, that shouldn't be too hard.) Wear it untucked with chinos or jeans. And no tie, please.

Pretty much every chino shop around is having some fun with color this summer, and the key to wearing colorful pants — besides starting with blue and working your way up to red or even mint — is to tone down things on top. Pair your new pants with navy, gray, or white shirts.

If you're hitting the road for parts unknown, this new Hamilton wristwatch tells time in 24 different time zones (via the three-letter airport codes at the 2:00 position). It's water-resistant up to 300 meters and looks good, too.

Not so tall: Look for a pair that stops about mid-thigh to keep things in proportion. Bonus points if it's got vertical stripes, which give the appearance of height.

Fit: A pair of fitted shorts, without a lot of extra bulk or fabric, will follow the natural contours of your waist.

Not so fit: Drawstring shorts have some good give-and-take at the waist, but don't cinch them too tight — men can have muffin tops, too.

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Jeffrey Westbrook/Studio D

The Casual Suit

Instead of the standard khaki two-piece, try a combination of soft, off-white, slim-cut tailoring. It's not a suit so much as an un-suit, and if you keep your shirt and shoes on the muted side, it's a halfway point between casual and dressed up.

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